Boscawen Inn

Formally Recognized:
1983/09/29

Other Name(s)

n/a

Links and documents

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Construction Date(s)

Listed on the Canadian Register:
2009/06/10

Statement of Significance

Description of Historic Place

The Boscawen Inn is a large building of wood construction in the Queen Anne Revival style, located on Cumberland Street in Old Town Lunenburg, NS. The building is located on a steep slope and has some lawn on the south and east portions of the property. It is two-and-a-half storeys, with additional gables and add-ons. From Lincoln Street the viewer is struck by the steep façade with a large lawn on a steep slope, a large terrace and various styles of dormers and gables. From Cumberland Street, the building has a tall, rectangular appearance, with a long wing on the western end and only a parking area separating the building from the streetline. Both the building and the land are included in the municipal designation.

Heritage Value

The Boscawen Inn is valued as an excellent example of Queen Anne Revival architecture, and for its association with the prominent Kaulbach family.

Originally called Boscawen Manor, it was built in 1888 by Senator H.A.N. Kaulbach as a wedding present for his daughter Edna and her husband James R. Rudolf, a few buildings away from Edna’s childhood home. The house was designed by prominent architect Henry Busch, who also designed Lunenburg's town hall. James Rudolf was a partner in a successful Lunenburg shipping firm and a shareholder in other business ventures, doing business in the West Indies and the North Atlantic.

The family maintained the home until 1905, when it went into the possession of the Bank of Montreal. In 1945 Boscawen Manor was sold again and it became a hotel, taking on the name Boscawen Inn. It was at this time that the west wing was added and, in 1962, a dining room extension was added on the south side.

Despite the additions, the building has retained much of its original character. With its conspicuous location on the brow of a steep hill, and across from the parade grounds, Boscowan Inn is a valuable addition to the heritage character of Old Town Lunenburg.

Source: Notice of Recommendation to Register as a Town Heritage Property, Heritage Designation file 66400-40

Character-Defining Elements

Character-defining elements of Boscawen Inn relate to its Queen Anne Revival architecture, location, and demonstration of upper class, nineteenth century wealth in Lunenburg and include:

- all structural elements of the Queen Anne Revival style, including the hipped roof gable wings, asymmetrical form with a circular tower and large projecting bay with the gable end cornice on the south façade, terrace on the south façade connected to the eastern veranda and tall windows;- all decorative elements relating to the Victorian architecture, in particular those of the Queen Anne Revival style, including the prominent oriel window on the northeast corner with multi-paned, decorative glass, trim in the south gable end and bargeboard bracketry, turned posts on the veranda and terrace, pedimented gable dormers, and dentilled eaves;- location of the building in a central area of Old Town Lunenburg, presenting attractive façades at all angles and thereby increasing the prominence of the building, and the use of a large lot with access on both Cumberland and Lincoln Streets, allowing for a steep landscaped lawn on the southern side and a terrace;- interior Victorian elements such as staircase banisters, doorway surrounds and ceiling cornices, fireplaces and general room layouts.